Wednesday, June 29, 2016

The Chain Theory


Today's world is a function of economic globalism. It wasn't always like this. In the good old days of Trump, it was believed that when Wall Street sneezed the world caught cold. Somewhere along the line American capitalism found itself at a crossroads. America as a market place was saturated. Many families had a home, cars and all the latest electronic devices and toys. The only way to expand was to create new markets...and thus the global economy was born.

The global economy or the "Chain Theory" as named by yours faithfully, consists of five links. The USA, Europe, Japan, China and the emerging markets. The chain of course is only as strong as its weakest link(s). The most obvious but not the only weak link is the European Union. The geopolitical concept that 28 countries divided by history, language, tradition, ancient hatreds, culture and geography could unite under one currency and a single unelected leadership is doomed to failure. This European  leadership was sorely tested in 2008 when a corrupt and greedy US banking system fell apart at the seams. Trillions of dollar debt was created to save a system that was "too big too fail". Europe wobbled but somehow regained a woefully weak balance...once again by the creation of debt.

The next crack in the European link was a crisis between the hot blooded financially irresponsible Greeks and the cold blooded efficient Germans which eventually forced Greece into a generations long economic depression. The chain survived but the European link was further weakened. 

History is marked by a long list of decisions that lead to unintended consequences. Islam is in the process of imploding leading to civil wars and waves of refugees. The new EU in all its multicultural intellectualism welcomed these refugees with open arms. Try to picture 28 different cultures loosely based on Christianity and with a history of racism and war mongering trying to absorb millions of refugees into an economy already bedevilled by unemployment. Now add to the mixture refugees who have a different language, religion and no idea of what freedom and democracy mean. The stunned Europeans were beset by crime and rape (yes folks...rape) epidemics across the continent. The politically correct European leaders tried desperately to turn the other cheek. Just Google "refugees rape in Europe". 

The winds of change in Europe were emphasized by the Brexit vote that surprised many, but not all. Without thinking but acting instinctively the British jumped off the European Band wagon. Perhaps intuitively they understood, like many in Europe today, that in the long term the EU is a failed experiment by well meaning folks. Immediately in the aftermath of Brexit the EU issued an earth-shattering statement that was partially or wholly ignored by the press...perhaps they do not understand. George Friedman writes: "Today, foreign ministers from the European Union’s six founding member states issued an extraordinary statement, declaring that they will “recognize different levels of ambition amongst Member States when it comes to the project of European integration.” This was a landmark capitulation by the major European powers, accepting the idea that uniformity across the bloc is impossible and nations can choose the terms of membership.

The Chain has been further weakened. Brexit is another symptom of a failed experiment. Will the chain hold? Only time will tell, but my guess is that someone searching for a durable link in the chain will not find it in Europe. 

United we stand...divided we fall - Father John Dickinson

Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it. - George Santayana

The problem with revolutions is that they always end right where they begin - Matthew Catania

When Money or debt is created in large amounts, the rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class is doomed - The Peanut Gallery

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

The Peanut Gallery

Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.

1.The big news of the day: The British are leaving the EU. The two largest centres of the "Remain" support were Scotland and London. London is where the majority of Muslim immigrants and British intellectuals reside. The British have been watching the EU's multicultural ideology at work for decades and clearly they have said "enough!" The Peanut Gallery believes that this vote is the beginning of the end of an unelected EU and a philosophy that has benefitted Germany to the detriment of others. The global trend toward nationalism will continue as will the attack on political elitism. COMMENT: As for those watching Trump cheering the process...the markets have given a miniscule preview of what might happen if he is elected.

2. The U.N. refugee agency said June 20 that the number of people in the world displaced by conflict has reached more than 65 million, the highest it has ever been, BBC reported. That means that roughly one in 113 people throughout the world is either a refugee, an asylum seeker or an internally displaced person. One-third of these people come from Afghanistan, Syria or Somalia, according to the United Nations. Moreover, despite the media's heavy focus on Europe's refugee crisis, the vast majority of those displaced by war — around 86 percent — are currently living in low- and middle-income countries such as Turkey and Pakistan.  COMMENT: Refugees change the course of history and the case in question is no different.

3. International concerns are showing interest in Israel and Jordan's Red-Dead Sea pipeline. Sources inform "Globes" that 17 groups of Israeli and international companies yesterday bid in the tender for construction and operation of the project. Bidders in the $800 million tender include Chinese, Lebanese, Egyptian, Japanese, Korean, Canadian and Israeli companies. The project is designed to save the Dead Sea, whose level has been falling year by year, and arrange the division of water between Israel and Jordan. COMMENT: Politicians and analysts who argue that Israel is more isolated than ever, should get their heads out of their....whatever.

4. The US has arguably some of the smartest people on the planet. They also arguably have amongst the population members of the scum of the earth variety. Listening to these pro gun types spouting their hypocrisy on national TV can be nauseating to say the least. "Its a terrorism thing" they say or "its much worse in other countries". They must be thinking of failed states like Syria and Yemen. I wonder how they would define the Sandy Hook shooting? For the record...


Enough said.

5.Ynet Israel: The March 2016 cycle of Desert Reconnaissance Battalion soldiers were sworn in on Thursday, consisting largely of Muslim Bedouins, along with some Christian and Muslim Arabs, all of whom volunteered for army service; 'I understood how important it was to give and do my part for the country in which I was born, that I live my life in, and that I'm proud of.' COMMENT: Are you watching Mr Trump? Kolhakavod L Tsahal!

6.Iraqi forces recaptured the last district held by Islamic State militants in the city of Fallujah on June 26, ending the battle after nearly five weeks of fighting, the commanding general said, Reuters reported. The offensive has been backed by a U.S.-led coalition mostly in the form of airstrikes. At least 1,800 ISIS fighters were killed in the operation to retake Fallujah, and the rest had fled, officials said. Fighting to recapture the Iraqi city has forced more than 85,000 residents to flee to overwhelmed government-run camps. COMMENT: Say what you like about Obama..."Slowly but surely" works for him.

7.A new report from Germany's domestic intelligence agency catalogued a 42 percent rise in violence by right-wing extremists in 2015, Reuters reported June 28. The report listed more than 1,400 acts of violence throughout the year, including dozens of arson attacks against refugee centers and attacks against politicians and journalists. During 2015 Germany took in more than one million migrants, many of who were fleeing violence in the Middle East, Afghanistan and North Africa. The influx of migrants also led to a record performance during the country's March regional elections for the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. COMMENT: Here we go again!

We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to
public office - Aesop

Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge
even where there is no river - Nikita Khrushchev

Monday, June 20, 2016

The Peanut Gallery

Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.

1.Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch: The numbers are daunting if not shocking: $12.3 trillion of money printing, nearly $10 trillion in negative-yielding global bonds, 654 interest rate cuts since Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008.  And what have we gotten for all of this quantitative easing, interest rate slashing, and central bank monetary manipulation? Economic growth in advanced economies that won’t likely eclipse 2% this year and a global debt problem that has only grown more acute. COMMENT: I've always wondered what the twighlight zone looks like....this is it!

2.For the first time ever, Israel was elected to head a permanent committee at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly, despite intense efforts by Arab and Muslim states to stop the nomination. In a secret ballot Monday in New York, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon was elected chairman of the GA’s Sixth Committee, which deals with legal issues. “This is a historic achievement for the State of Israel. We broke the glass ceiling: Despite the opposition of many countries, including Iran and others that tried to prevent the vote, we managed to be elected for the first time to head a committee at the UN,” Danon said. COMMENT: Amazing how at the end of the day money talks and Bullshit walks and the oil money is not just walking...it's running!

UPDATE: At least four Arab nations voted in favor of Israel’s successful and historic candidacy to head a major United Nations committee, the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Quds al-Arabi reported earlier this week. 

3.Fact Check: Donald Trump says that US trade imbalances with China and Japan are caused by currency manipulation and that these countries (and others) are deliberately devaluing their currencies to make their products cheaper and thus more attractive.The reality is that China has not devalued its currency in the last five years and has REVALUED its currency by 23% over 10 years. The Japanese Yen has REVALUED by 14.2% over ten years. In fact the biggest manipulator of its currency over ten years has been the US! What does that say about Trump's business acumen?

UPDATE: And now Trump has fired his campaign manager.....Perhaps he is of the opinion that he can fire the senate or congress if they disagree with the him. 

4.Shanghai Disneyland, Disney's first theme park in mainland China, is big by every measure. In fact, it's the entertainment company's largest overseas outpost. Here's a few of the monster numbers that brought the "happiest place on earth" to the world's second-largest economy.

100,000 Workers estimated to have worked on the park's construction, with thousands more working on the accompanying resort infrastructure

5.5 Billions of dollars it cost to build the park

3.6 Millions of liters of water needed to fill Treasure Cove

16 Millions of meals Disney expects to sell each year

150 Dishes on offer in the theme park, representing the eight major cuisines of China

700 Kilograms of rice Disney expects to serve each day

600,000 Giant turkey legs visitors are expected to consume in a year

12 Million heads of bok choy that workers are expected to trim in a year

COMMENT: Life is good in Disneyland.

5.Over the next several decades, the biggest and wealthiest generation in U.S. history will transfer roughly $30 trillion in assets to their Gen X and millennial children, and if studies are accurate, most of those children will promptly fire their parents' advisors.
"Studies regularly show that when wealth passes to another generation, in the majority of cases, the heirs change financial advisors," said Gauthier Vincent, head of Deloitte's U.S. Wealth Management practice. "The relationship between assets, asset owners and financial advisors is unraveling before our eyes." COMMENT: Interesting how an entitled generation of millennials will handle all this money with all the sharks and hustlers awaiting in the shadows.

6.Geopolitical Futures: The success of an anti-establishment party in Italy’s local elections on June 19 highlights that the country’s banking problems, sluggish economic growth and combative relationship with the European Union are changing the perception of Italian voters. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which ran a campaign focused on corruption and promises of change and supported a possible referendum on eurozone membership, won mayoral positions in both Rome and Turin. The party’s popularity tripled in Rome compared to the 2013 local elections. COMMENT: The cracks are appearing all over the EU. Brexit or no Brexit this movement is gaining in strength.

7.India announced big reforms June 20 to its policies regarding foreign direct investment (FDI) that will open the country's civil aviation and defense sectors to full outside ownership, Reuters reported. The move, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted would make India's economy the most open in the world for FDI. COMMENT: India is the new China. Quietly and without much fanfare this economy is reaping the fruits of lowers energy prices, a stable and rising currency and strong GDP growth. Israel will be a huge benefactor of these reforms.

8. Stratfor: In Asia, fish and other marine foodstuffs play a greater role in diets than in the West. Seafood production is an important source of employment and a vital component of national economies. Asian fisheries make up half the global total capture production, and six of the top 10 producers of marine products are in Asia. In the South China Sea, maritime security and naval forces are growing in size, assertions of national sovereignty are becoming more concrete, and keeping track of the 1.72 million fishing vessels in the South China Sea alone is not only a daunting task, it is one that can draw neighbors into more active confrontation. COMMENT: Interesting take on the powder keg that is the South China Sea.

“A trillion here, a trillion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.”

—Daniel Hannan, British politician, journalist, and EU Parliament member

Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might
be better to change the locks - Doug Larson


Friday, June 10, 2016

The Peanut Gallery


1. The United Methodist Church has rejected several resolutions calling for the 12-million-member Protestant church to divest from companies engaging in business with Israel over its treatment of Palestinians. Church committees over the weekend voted down four Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions resolutions brought to a vote at the church’s quadrennial United Methodist Church General Conference in Portland, Oregon, taking place this week. The resolutions “pretty much went down in flames,” UMC delegate and BDS opponent John Lomperis told Religion News Service on Sunday. COMMENT: This BDS crowd appear to be an uncontrolled rabble of fringe group anti-semites who, quite frankly are almost obsolete....waiting in the corridors for a Bernie Sanders type hypocrite to appear.

2.Bloomberg: Under the economic plan known as Vision 2030 promoted by the king’s powerful son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, the government is signaling it wants to wean the kingdom’s economy off oil revenue, lessening the need to manage prices. Moreover, the planned privatization of Saudi Arabian Oil Co. will make the nation the only member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries without full ownership of its national oil company. COMMENT: Goodbye OPEC.

3. Travel planning site Hipmunk reported that it has seen first-quarter bookings for Trump Hotels decline 59.3 percent year over year, while overall bookings through the site have generally risen during the same period.Which Trump hotels are suffering?
Percent change in bookings between the first quarter of 2016 and 2015.

Trump Soho New York-74%
Trump International Hotel Las Vegas -71%
Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto -47%
Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago -31%
The Trump Taj Mahal (Atlantic City) -17%
Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk  +4%

COMMENT: Looks like Trump supporters cannot afford Trump prices.

4.(CNN)The leader of a Pakistani Islamic council has proposed a bill that allows husbands to "lightly beat" their wives as a form of discipline.In the 75-page proposal, Mohammad Khan Sheerani suggests a light beating is acceptable should the need arise to punish a woman. The proposal bans forceful beating, saying only a small stick is necessary to instill fear. COMMENT: What say you folks? Is this guy making Pakistan great again?

5.One of Bernie Sanders biggest mistakes....standing up for the rights of Israel's enemies and accusing the the IDF of " murdering innocent Palestinians" while exaggerating the numbers of these so called innocents. The Jews of New York let him have it with both barrels and now the Jewish communities of New Jersey and California rocketed him with a cruise missile. Feel the Bern Bernie? I do.....I'm loving every second of it....Burn baby burn! Pass the popcorn please.

6.What a difference a decade makes! The terrorist attack at the Sarona Market in Tel Aviv' was reported by CNN as an attack by terrorists who murdered and wounded innocent Israelis. No longer "gunmen" or "Palestinian gunmen shot dead x amount of Israeli's" or "Palestinian fighters, guns blazing stormed an Israeli market place. There are casualties on both sides". COMMENT: Its taken a while and the odd terrorist attack by Muslim terrorists in Europe and the US for reality to sink in. Better late than never.

7.Central Banks continue to manipulate markets by purchasing equities, buying and selling futures, supporting oil prices amongst other things. Mark my words folks...this will end badly, its only when and not if. Its time to be really cautious. Preservation of capital is more important than profits. Stay safe.

Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and
campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect

each from the other - Oscar Ameringer

A politician is a fellow who will lay
down your life for his country - Tex Guinan